Unconventional Hero: Chapter 8

Disclaimer: I do not claim any ownership of or affiliation to the Naruto franchise. This is non-profit recreation.

Warning: Mature content. Implied ShikaIno and Sasu. . .


In the previous chapter:

Sasuke slunk around the corner just in time to hear what sounded like a whimper from Kiba. He smirked, on his way back to Sakura's apartment.

'That was pretty close. But I liked the outcome. Such a mama's boy.'


Sakura waved goodbye to Ino, the last to leave. The girls stayed for about an hour, just to drink a little bit of herbal tea and chat. Yeah, it was mostly about Sasuke. They couldn't believe it was true! After all these years, Sasuke finally came back. And he wasn't sentenced to death. Or really harshly sentenced. It was suspicious to the girls, but Sakura was still living in her own little world. Ino knew Sakura was a little off-kilter before Sasuke came back. She was depressed. Ino was naturally nosy, and had wormed her way in on even the itty bittiest details of Sakura's love life since. . .well, since they were teenagers. Ino noticed Sakura's unwillingness to let go of the little things. Details mattered to Sakura.

'Lee was nice and pleasant, but anyone could only stand so much of him before screaming and jumping off a cliff. Except for Gai-sensei, of course. But Sakura put up with him for a whole date! She tried, at least. Shino. . .wasn't very romantic, being a bug-crazed freak show. But oh, my gosh! Sakura hit the jack pot with Kiba! Aside from Shika-kun, Kiba happens to be one of the hottest, studliest, manliest guys in the village. He filled out very nicely. He is slightly broad-shouldered, he is tall and very handsome, he isn't dark but is definitely sun-kissed, tattooed since he was a kid, had a smile that could kill, and those canines. . .hmm, I wonder if he liked to scrape. . .things. . .with those bad boys? Oh my gosh, Ino! I love Shika, I love Shika, I love Shika. . .'

Ino couldn't get her head out of Sakura's business all the way home, where she was greeted by a drunk-as-Hell Shikamaru taking a nap on the front lawn. Nothing she hadn't been expecting, though, so she just unlocked the door, wanting to quickly make her way to bed. But Shikamaru woke up and acknowledged her in a language Ino could understand.

"Something pretty interesting happened at the other bar tonight. You missed quite a show."

Ino's ears perked up.

"Gossip? Gossip? Gossip? Gossip? Are you holding out on me, Shika-kun?" Ino's heels clicked on the sidewalk until she was aerating the lawn with those spiky heels. But she didn't care. She knelt down in the grass next to her fiance, waiting anxiously and starry-eyed for him to spill the beans.

Shikamaru's eyes were once again closed, but he acknowledged her giddy presence by lazily opening one eyelid to look at her, craning his neck to see her to his side. Then he closed it again and readjusted his neck.

"I'll tell you in the morning." He yawned and stood up, ready to go to sleep in a warm, cushy bed.

"Oh, Hell no. I don't think so!" She watched him walk into the house, leaving her kneeling in the grass in the front yard. "Shika-kun!" Ino managed to rise to her feet once again, with a little bit of a struggle. She clicked her heels on the concrete sidewalk again and ran through the doorway. She didn't hear him in the bedroom, so she checked the kitchen. There he was, drinking orange juice from the carton. But she was too enthusiastic about hearing the gossip to chastise him for that. She'd save it for later, though, no doubt.

"Shika-kun," she whined. "I wanna hear it!"

Shikamaru returned the carton of orange juice into the refrigerator and stood at the counter, one hand resting on the edge of the granite surface.

Ino tapped her foot, her arms crossed.

"Well? Anything you want to share with me, or was 'you missed something at the bar' all you've got?" She raised a blonde eyebrow, like she was daring him to spill it.

Shikamaru grinned. "What do I get for it?"

Ino's mouth gaped open, not sure whether to be shocked or appalled.

"What do you want for it? Both the pillows tonight?"

Shikamaru grinned wickedly. "What do I like?"

"To take naps?"

"What else?"

"Cloud-gazing?"

"What else?"

She sighed. "Shōgi?"

Shikamaru rolled his eyes, his own sigh dwarfing Ino's.

Ino arched the same blonde eyebrow. "What? You like and dislike a lot of stuff."

~seven minutes later~

"Is it a puzzle?"

"No." Now he's sitting on a stool at the counter, where they usually eat breakfast together if they're both home and not on a mission.

"Salt water taffy?"

"No."

"Sake?"

"No, but not a bad idea."

"New shoes?"

"No, that's you."

"Oh. A new hair band?"

"No, that's you again. . .well, yeah. Just go on."

"Hmm. A new puppy?"

"No."

"A new kitty?"

"No."

"Aww. Why not?"

"No."

"Shika-kun. . ."

"No."

"Shika. . ."

"No."

"Shi-"

"No!"

"Shika. . ." She said it in a much lower tone. . .

"No."

"But you're not letting me talk now. I think I have another guess."

"No. No more guesses."

"But I was going to ask you if it was. . ." Ino whispered a few seductive things into his ear. Shikamaru's head perked up. He stood without much of a change in his facial expression, besides maybe a twitching eye. He picked up Ino by her waist, then swung her legs up to carry her bridal-style to their bedroom suite, Ino giggling the entire way.

"I guess I guessed right that time. . ." Ino trailed off as she felt Shikamaru already slipping her heels off.


Sakura shut the door to her apartment around 12:30 a.m. She sighed. She decided to waste time by taking a shower to get the bar smell out of her skin and hair and go to bed clean and relaxed. It just felt better going to bed after a relaxing shower. Sakura thumbed through her folded towels in her linen closet for a good, fresh-smelling fluffy towel, then for the perfect fluffy washcloth. She stripped and donned her favorite silky bathrobe. Sakura kept watching the clock, though, and wasted time before she even got into the shower. Then she decided she was hungry, so she skipped the shower idea and rummaged through her kitchen. She found some quick-fix instant ramen. It sounded pretty good at the moment, so she indulged herself. By the time she was finished chowing down, it was just barely past 1:45. Sasuke had not come back yet. She was beginning to worry. He couldn't escape the confines of the village, and there's no way he could. . .well, he couldn't do much with his chakra sealed. So Sakura plopped down on her cute little white couch, ready to stay up all night if she had to. She did have to - she was his acting "parole officer." He would have to account for his whereabouts these past few hours. There was no way he'd-

*knock knock*

Sakura shot up from the couch and sped over to her door. She didn't hesitate to throw the door open.

"Where have you b-"

"Oh. . .hi there."


"Um. . .excuse me? Sir?"

Sasuke had his hands in his pockets, his shirt still very much disheveled and untucked. He had blood on his face from a gash close to his eye and swelling from what felt like a pretty bruised jaw. His back hurt, too. He was almost certain he had shards of broken glass in his back. Yeah, he was roughed up a bit. He hadn't felt so weak since the Chunin exams all those years ago. After years on a quest for power, you tend to grow thicker skin. But now, he felt like a thin rice paper version of his former self. He didn't like being so. . .vulnerable.

When he heard the tiny voice from the other side of the road, he stopped to turn and look. There she was, that sultry waitress. She was crossing the street to talk to him.

'What? Did I forget something in the shinobi bar?'

"Oh, it is you." She reached her hand out for a handshake. "My name is-"

"Christy."

She smiled. "You remembered?"

"It's on your dress." He looked down at her name tag. The fact that the name tag was so close to her bust was only a pure coincidence. Sure.

"Oh!" She giggled nervously. "Yes, of course! How silly of me!" She slapped his arm playfully. He raised his eyebrow, not sure how to handle this. He didn't receive too many flirtatious girls coming his way when his aura reeked of murder and hate. Though he always received sultry glances. But this one. . .

"My name is Sasuke. Is there something I can help you with?"

"Oh, well. . .um, Sasuke. . .yes, as a matter of fact, there is. I usually walk home with some of the other waitresses, but, you see. . ."

". . ." Sasuke stared at her until she continued. He wanted her to spit it out. He didn't like to play games.

". . .well, I was hoping a young gentleman like yourself wouldn't mind escorting me home?"

"Hn." He thought about it for a moment. What would Sakura say? After all, he was just being gentlemanly. He didn't want anything bad to happen to this defenseless young girl. He couldn't just be rude and say 'no - good luck, miss.' Well, what Sakura didn't know couldn't hurt her, now, could it? He nodded in compliance.

"Oh, thank you!" The waitress grabbed hold of his arm, like a formal escort would offer to her. But he didn't offer. She just took it.

"So. . ." He didn't know whether or not he should initiate conversation. He felt like it could be something he'd regret later. Much like this little walk.

"What happened to your shirt?"

"I was in a fight at another bar. Someone was being very rude and disrespectful. He was eventually escorted home to his mother."

"Oh. Was it a child?"

"No. Another guy I know. He's just a mama's boy, I guess. He's an Inuzuka, and their pack, or clan, rather, is-"

"Oh, my goodness! You fought against a shinobi! Are you a shinobi, too?"

Sasuke nodded. "I've been out of the village for a while, but I've returned, and am going to be granted full citizenship again. I'm an original member of the former Team 7, under Kakashi Hatake."

"Oh, my goodness! I've seen him in the bar sometimes, with the perverted guy with the metal thing he's always chewing on. And the lady with the baby, and the Hokage's assistant. He's a Jounin, isn't he?"

"Kakashi?"

"The Inuzuka guy. . .you know Kakashi Hatake by his first name?"

Sasuke scratched the back of his head with his free arm. "Well, back in the day we just called him Kakashi-sensei. Naruto, Sakura and I were his first Genin."

"Oh, your teammates? Were they there tonight?"

'Jesus, she is just full of questions!' "No, only one. The pink-haired kunoichi was my teammate, but the blond-haired Dobe named Naruto is on a mission. He's the shinobi with the nine-tailed beast sealed within him."

"The whiskers guy who eats a lot of ramen?"

"Yeah, that's the guy. Lots of orange, too."

"Oh." She was quiet for a brief second. "So the pink-haired girl wasn't your girlfriend?"

Sasuke choked on air for a minute, taking in a sharp gasp of air.

"Oh, she is? Or ex-girlfriend?" She looked disappointed, yet hopeful.

"No. We're just now trying to get reacquainted as friends, and then we may be teammates again. That's what I'm doing with all those guys. It had been a while since I'd seen any of them, and we weren't all always on friendly terms. Even now. . ."

"That Inuzuka guy isn't much of friend to you, is he?"

'Is she blind or just stupid? I just told her we were fighting! I'm still bleeding, for Christ's sake.'

"No."

They walked up to an apartment complex not too far from the bars. Sasuke thought the walk was pretty short. And not because he was enjoying it. It was because it was too close for her to need an escort. She mainly just needed a flashlight.

"Well, this is my apartment. Oh, my goodness, you're bleeding!"

"Yeah, nothing I can't fix when I get home. Just a gash. I've had much worse, believe me." He hated overreactions and unnecessary drama, and her gasps were excruciating.

"No, let me just get my first aid kit! Come on!" She practically dragged him up the steps and led him to a blue door. She whipped out her keys and unlocked the door, coaxing him inside. Sasuke could have sworn he saw her smirk, with an evil glint in her eye. This really wasn't such a good idea.

"I think I should just go home and rest."

"No, no! It'll only take a second! Here, sit!" She shoved him into a chair in her small living room. It had pretty basic furnishings and a yellow and brown-hued color scheme with her decor. Very young girl-ish.

He heard her call from down the narrow hallway. "I'll just be a minute! Let me get changed out of my uniform! Don't go anywhere!"

Sasuke seriously thought he should just stand up and walk out the door. It didn't feel right. But she was harmless, so it wasn't like he was in danger or anything. But why was something. . .foreboding in the pit of his stomach? She wasn't a demon in disguise, was she? She seemed pretty young and feminine, so he was sure it wasn't a justu or a transvestite.

He though he had waited for about ten minutes just for an unnecessary first aid kit. He neglected to tell her he had spent the afternoon moving in with the pink-haired kunoichi. . .who happened to be a talented, renowned doctor at the hospital, and an indispensable medical kunoichi out in the field of battle. With a wave of her hand, he'd be better than new. His shirt, though. . .well, maybe Sakura could sew.

"Here I come!" He heard her too-pleasant voice and felt shiver running down his back. 'Oh, no. She isn't going to. . .'

The waitress named Christy turned the corner and came into view, wearing very scant lingerie. Nothing was left up to the imagination, except maybe how in the Hell she squeezed into that getup. Sasuke stopped breathing. Yes, she was very seductive. Yes, she was very pretty. Yes, she was very willing and able. But Sasuke's. . .heart wasn't in it.

"Well now, mister Sasuke." Christy slunk down to her knees, directly in front of Sasuke. His back was pressed flush against the backing of the chair, breathless and wide-eyed. Christy giggled at his expression.

"Now, let me see those cuts." In her hand was a tissue with something on it. By the time she touched his gash with it, he confirmed it was alcohol. He seethed with sudden, unexpected pain.

"Oh, poor baby. Here, let me make it better." Christy crawled into his lap, straddling his pelvis. She pushed her face right into Sasuke's and blew on the cut to 'make it feel better.' But she didn't retract her face. Instead, she used her tongue to explore his ear, kissing and licking her way down his neck. She giggled when she felt a bulge on his crotch begin to form. Sasuke had enough, and pushed her backwards.

"No. We can't do this."

She sat back, still on his lap. "Why not?" She pouted in her best impression of a sad puppy.

'Yeah, she's pretty sad.' "I'm just not in the mood for any of this. I have somewhere I need to be." He gently lifted her off his lap, then stood up. But lo and behold, he felt her hands on his sides.

"C'mon, Sasuke. You know you want it. Just one night is all I'm asking. Leave when you want to. I'm only looking for a little fun. Forget about that other pink-haired girl. She isn't as pretty as me, and wasn't interested in you, either, from what I remember-"

He couldn't help but get frustrated. "Woman, do I look like fun? Or interested?'"Without thinking, he partially activated his Sharingan, enough to control her movements.

Before the young girl knew it, she was standing alone in her living room. The hot young man from the bar was nowhere to be found. She didn't even hear the door shut. It terrified her, knowing he was literally in front of her, within arms' reach, just moments ago. It was only moments, right?


Please review!

Ooh, Sasuke's gotten himself into quite a pickle! Should he have left, or should he have enjoyed himself? He's a single, unattached guy, right? Should Ino and Shikamaru be the only couple to have fun tonight?